Satsuma Kinzangura turns the former Kushikino gold mine into one of the town's most memorable visits. A small tram takes visitors into the cool mine tunnels, where rows of shochu jars age in the steady underground temperature.
The tour works because the setting is real. You get a little gold-mining history, a look at the tunnel shrine and ageing cellar, and then a tasting or shop stop back above ground. It is more interesting than a standard brewery visit, especially if you already know Kagoshima for its sweet-potato shochu.